Waking Up
by NowComesTheNight
Summary: Just how much strength does the average person posses? The depths of human will surpasses impossibility and is without measure. Kanda is about to discover the depths of his own will. Kanda-centric. Yullen, AU oneshot. Drama with a bit of romance. Rated for some gruesome details. Not too bad though.
1. Chapter 1

**Waking Up**

D. Grayman fan fiction: Just how much strength does the average person posses? The depths of human will surpasses impossibility and is without measure. Kanda is about to discover the depths of his own will. Kanda-centric. Yullen, AU oneshot. Drama with a bit of romance.

In this one, Kanda and Allen are average college students faced with disaster. Kanda is athletic and strong from years of martial arts training and hiking with his family, but he is not super human. Please keep that in mind while reading this. There is a bit of OOC, especially in Kanda, but I feel it's justified. This is also put up fast and un-bated, so there may be some mistakes. If you point them out I will fix them promptly.

Disclaimer: I do not own D. Grayman or any of the characters I used in this fic, they belong to Hoshino-sensei and all involved companies. This plot is mine though, so please don't steal.

xoxoxo

Something was wrong. Kanda knew it the moment he woke up before any of his senses cleared. For one, he was lying face down on the hard ground. Where was he? He didn't remember falling asleep. There was another problem; he couldn't think straight. His thoughts were disoriented and scattered, and it was taking a long time to get them back together. A long time... It never takes him so long to wake up. What happened?

Kanda took a breath and immediately began coughing. He turned his head to the side in an attempt to get fresh air, but to no avail. No matter what he did his lungs burned and his throat stung as if he were inhaling shards of glass. Trying to move was pointless as well. His body was in agony and any attempt to get his arms beneath himself for leverage brought on a new wave of mind numbing pain. Darkness clawed at his vision and, though part of him welcomed the reprieve it would bring, something told Kanda that if he allowed it to take over he wouldn't wake up again.

Suddenly, someone coughed and startled Kanda out of his internal struggle. There was another person here with him. The Japanese man grit his teeth and pushed past his pain, forcing himself into a sitting position. He looked around the room, memories piecing themselves back together. He was on the upper floor of the Howard Building. It was where he had his History class this semester. They'd taken over an empty classroom to go over a project... They got into a fight... There was an explosion, then everything went dark... They?

Kanda searched the class with a renewed sense of urgency. Memory had returned to him clearly now and he knew the Moyashi was here somewhere. A thick, acrid combination of smoke and plaster dust swirled through the air obscuring his vision. The room itself was barely recognizable. The windows were blown out, shattered glass littered the floor everywhere he looked, chairs and tables were scattered and overturned and most of the wall was destroyed. Kanda could see the wall and part of the floor in the next room over had caved in as well. He didn't know what happened exactly, but the sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach felt like the end of everything.

"Moyashi!" He hacked, trying to force the words out his pained throat. "Moyashi, you there?"

Another cough sounded before a feeble, "K-Kanda?"

It was as though he were trying to listen through water with how muffled and far away the voice sounded. None the less, Kanda focused on it and forced his battered body to move towards his classmate. The older student found Allen covered in dust and soot, and lying amidst debris near the partially collapsed wall. He didn't look too good. Kneeling next to him, Kanda tried to asses all of the injuries. There was a nasty looking gash splitting open the skin of the pale boy's forehead, blood oozed from the wound matting and darkening the usually pristine white hair, and, if the odd angle was anything to go by, he was pretty sure that Allen's shoulder was dislocated. There were probably other, less obvious injuries, but this wasn't what concerned Kanda the most. The Moyashi was lying across a wooden beam from the fallen wall and what looked like a part of it was protruding through his lower abdomen above his right hip.

"Shit." He hissed.

"Kanda?" Hazy, gray eyes slit open and tried to focus on him. Kanda added 'concussion' to the Moyashi's list of injuries. "Kanda... You're bleeding." He slurred.

Blinking in surprise, Kanda put a hand to his face. Sure enough he saw the red liquid tainting his fingertips when he pulled it away. A dull throbbing and a quick swipe of the tongue told him that his lip was split. A minor injury. Kanda put it out of his mind and focused back on the boy who was beginning to squirm.

"What's going on?" Moyashi asked as he made an attempt to sit.

"A fucking tea party." He growled as he grabbed Allen's shoulder and kept him from moving too much. "Now stay still."

"But it hurts." The younger complained, trying to pull away from Kanda's grip.

"If you move it'll be worse. Now calm down and lie still." He commanded sternly.

Allen finally took the hint and settled down. Now that he didn't have to worry about the boy hurting himself more then he already was, Kanda went back to examining the gruesome wound. He may not have been the most intelligent or experienced person in the world, but the Japanese man did know emergency first aid very well. His father made sure of that. From what he could tell, the puncture sight was right around the Moyashi's Liver and Intestines. At best, he'd ruptured multiple areas of the Intestines and it would require intensive surgery to fix. At worst, he'd punctured the Liver and, if not removed and treated correctly, Allen could bleed out in 20 minutes or less. Thankfully, the wound wasn't bleeding too heavily at the moment. Kanda took that as a good sign.

"It's bad, isn't it?" A nervous voice broke the silence.

"If you stay still and wait for the ambulance, you'll be fine." Kanda said gruffly, trying to sound more certain then he felt.

Allen nodded in understanding, but the older man could tell he was still scared. He couldn't exactly blame him either. Hell, even he was getting nervous sitting there among the ruins of their old classroom. Though he wasn't in as imminent danger as Moyashi, Kanda could tell from the radiating pain that he had his fair share of injuries and broken bones.

They sat in silence for a moment as the older student watched Allen suffer in fear. There was nothing he could do and his heart clenched painfully at his own helplessness.

"You should leave."

Kanda, again, blinked in surprise at Allen. Just as he was about to tell him to shove it, the floor lurched beneath them and the building gave an ominous shutter.

"Fucking shit!" Kanda shouted angrily as Allen cried out at the pain of the sudden movement. The building was old to begin with, and with the damage it had just sustained it seemed as though it wouldn't stand for much longer.

He looked at the younger boy. Moving him would be dangerous and could cause more or even fatal damage. However, if he didn't move him now then he would die when the floor gave out. Kanda didn't really have a choice. Without giving the Moyashi's previous comment another thought, he wrapped his arms around the other boy's body for stability.

"This is gonna hurt." He warned briskly before pulling.

Hands clenched the fabric of his shirt tightly as Kanda pulled the Moyashi off the wooden beam and dragged them as far away from the area of dilapidated floor before placing the younger back down. After disentangling Allen's fingers from their death grip, Kanda looked over his troubling injury. The Japanese man bit the inside of his cheek in an effort not to let his alarm show on his face. It wasn't good. The gaping wound was now bleeding profusely and, even worse, the blood ran so dark it looked practically black. That was a clear sign his Liver was punctured.

"Shit." Kanda muttered under his breath.

The only thing he could do was try his best to dress the wound and get Allen help as fast as he could. He pulled off the white button up he'd worn that day and began tearing it into pieces. Thankfully the shirt was fairly heavy weight and made of cotton, so it would make a good impromptu dressing. Carefully, the Japanese man pressed the thickly folded fabric to the wound sites before tightly wrapping the rest of the material around the Moyashi's body. Even as he tied off the last piece, the material was soaking through with blood.

"K-Kanda? What happened?"

The Moyashi's face had gone white as a sheet and a light sheen had broken out across his forehead. Kanda felt his frustration deepen, the last thing he needed was for Allen to go into shock.

"There was an explosion. We need to get outta here." Kanda answered.

"Is it bad?" He asked dazedly.

The Japanese man frowned deeply. Allen's confusion confirmed his belief that the boy had a concussion. In fact, it might have been worse then he originally thought.

_Things couldn't get much worse._

xoxoxo

I was going to post this as a oneshot at first, but it seems to be getting long enough for chapters (at least 2) so I decided this would be a good place to stop and post. Plus I wanted to get a bit of feed back on the plot and if anyone thinks its interesting before wasting more study time on it. So let me know what you think!


	2. Chapter 2

Sorry for the long wait everyone! So in return, you get a long chapter! Unfortunately, the editing in this as kind of a rush job and probably non-existent in a couple of parts. If you all point out a shit ton, I will go back and fix it all.

Without further ado here is the next part.

All rights for D. Grayman go to Katsura Hoshino-sensei and all other affiliated parties. I only own the plot.

**XoxoxoX**

Things couldn't get much worse.

The thought had barely even formed in his mind then Allen began struggling with urgency to sit up and turn over. Since the only thing he could do at the moment was help, Kanda rolled him onto his uninjured side as the Moyashi began vomiting. The putrid smell was horrible and it took a lot of effort for him to quell his own gag reflex as the Freshman's body convulsed against the ground.

"Shit." Kanda whispered to himself as Allen used the collar of his shirt to wipe his mouth with.

The vomiting could be a symptom of either shock or head trauma, but either way the Moyashi's condition seemed to be growing more dire. He carefully picked up the smaller boy and shifted him so his good arm was slung around Kanda's bare shoulders. It wasn't the most ideal way to move him, but it was the only thing he could do.

"Kanda... You're bleeding." Allen slurred next to him as he lifted his face back up to the upper classman.

Kanda frowned as he licked the blood away. Why was the younger boy so heavily fixated on his split lip? Ignoring Allen's comment, he began to drag the two of them through the rubble lined hallway with some difficulty. He frowned deeply as he noticed his left leg felt funny, like it wasn't really part of him. Just a weighted, slightly stinging lump from his hip down. However, Kanda pushed it out of his mind and forged on with determination and grit. He could already hear the sirens approaching from a distance and if he could just make it to the ground floor, he and the Moyashi could come out of this alright.

"You should just leave me." The white haired freshman continued.

"Just shut your trap and at least try to walk, Moyashi." He growled angrily, managing to appear intimidating despite his stumbling, hobbling gait.

Kanda was getting worried that Allen was giving up. That was the last thing he needed right now. He'd already made up his mind that he would get Allen out of this place and that was exactly what he would do, whether the boy liked it or not. Once Kanda decided on something he wouldn't let it go.

The building gave another rumbling shutter that nearly knocked the two back to the ground causing Kanda to brace himself against the wall. However, the floor continued to dip inward and the fake tile splintered and fell away to the level beneath with a resounding crash. Kanda picked up his speed and ran to the doorway he knew would lead to the stairwell. Slamming his shoulder into the heavy, metal door, Kanda and Allen tumbled onto the platform before the tile crumbled from beneath their feet. In his rush to get away from the collapsing hallway, Kanda lost his footing and tumbled down the steps. He pulled Allen closer, wrapping him securely within his arms, turning his body to protect the injured boy and saw stars as he hit the steps hard, sliding along his back until they came to a stop at the landing.

Everything stilled; the floor settled and the staircase seemed to be in no danger of collapsing as the hallway had. Kanda lay panting and hacking as he tried to regain the breath forced from his lungs, his fingers tangled in the Moyashi's shirt. He could feel the bruises, scrapes, and friction burns forming along the raw, unprotected skin of his back and shoulders, the back his of head was throbbing, and his leg, which had been stinging before, now screamed in pain from his unrestrained use of it. In fact, his whole body radiated with a pain that was near unbearable and that ever comforting darkness began to cloud his vision again, but he couldn't let himself pass out. He had to keep going. Allen was in a far more serious condition then he, and Kanda had to get him out. It was his task, he had to get the boy out of the building alive.

Taking a few deep breaths and pushing back his agony, Kanda forced himself into a sitting position and lay Allen down carefully. His eyes scanned the boy over to make sure he hadn't accrued more injuries. Thankfully, he seemed to have gained nothing extra, but Kanda noticed, with a groan, that the gash on his forehead was worse then he originally realized. The skin was split to the bone from just above his hairline, over his left brow and even continued below his left eye and down his cheek. Blood flowed freely from the wound, adding to the already dangerous amount he lost and Kanda had no extra material left to help him staunch the flow, having already given up his shirt earlier. Even if he did, he would have used it to wrap the boy's abdomen instead, since the original bandaging was now soaked through, despite the fact that the bleeding had slowed some. The only bit of hope the Senior could find in this situation was that those sirens no longer sounded so distant.

"Oi! Moyashi!" He lightly slapped the side of the young man's face when he noticed his eyes slipping shut. Kanda allowed himself a little smirk when they snapped back open, startled. "You need to stay awake. The paramedics are almost here and then you can get help, but if you fall asleep you might not wake up. You hear me?"

"But Kanda... You're bleeding..." Allen said his usual protest, quickly adding "... You should just leave me."

"Why the fuck do you keep saying that! What the-"

Kanda was abruptly cut off by the feel of a hand lightly, gently sliding over his knee to his thigh. Swallowing back the gasp the sudden, tender touch caused, he reached down to pull the offending hand from his leg only for his eyes to widen in surprise from the sight. The material of his dark, blue jeans was soaked in blood and completely shredded. From what he could see beneath the material, the skin of his leg was not any better. There were many lacerations and puncture wounds both deep and shallow mostly concentrated on the outside of his leg, and there were even pieces of debris still embedded, including a rather large piece of glass just above his knee. Kanda was speechless. He had spent so much energy on not feeling the pain and only concerned with the Moyashi that he honestly hadn't noticed how bad his own injuries were. But Allen did. Those silver eyes seemed clearer and more focused then earlier when he locked gazes with the boy.

"... You can't carry me on this leg..." Allen said, blinking languidly. "Not without hurting yourself, too... And you might not even make it out."

Kanda just stared at the boy while his words sunk in. The implication of them...

"Just leave me and go."

... Allen _had_ given up. He had given up right at the beginning for Kanda's sake! Because he was worried that Kanda would die trying to help him! The Senior grit his teeth and gripped the hand on his thigh hard enough to startle the other boy into paying full attention to him.

"Listen to me." He seethed. "If I leave you here you will die. And I won't let that happen."

"But Kanda you will-"

"We will both get out of here, end of discussion." Although, Kanda didn't really think it should have been a discussion in the first place.

"Why are you-"

"Because you're my friend, damnit!" He shouted so forcefully that both boys were startled.

It should have surprised Kanda that he'd grown so attached to the boy so quickly, since he was usually so reserved and guarded with people. Despite that, it didn't even take much for Allen to worm his way beneath Kanda's skin. Ever since he met the boy at the beginning of the semester, he felt an odd sort of pull towards him to where even an argument with him was a comfort. At times when he would typically ignore people, he found himself unable to do so with the odd freshman. His complete ease with Allen was certainly a mystery. Kanda, however, wasn't the type to dwell on the 'hows' and 'whys' behind his emotions, and, frankly, he didn't really care to start guessing now. He was a simple person that way. There were only a few people, aside from Allen, who managed to get behind his guard, but once he opened up and befriended someone he would do just about anything for them.

How could the boy not notice how differently he treated him? Sure, they fought a lot, but Allen should have noticed by now that he wouldn't bother to acknowledge most people even if it were just to fight. He only bothered to fight with his friends. How could he lay there and think Kanda would leave him? Just thinking about the amount of time it was taking to get Allen to understand this was infuriating to Kanda. Time that ticked by slowly as the boy bled out in front of him. Time Allen would not get back.

"Look." Kanda grabbed the freshman by the chin and turned the confounded, bloodied face to stare him directly in the eyes. He had to get this out in one go and not waste any more time. "I don't give a fuck what you think of me or how I act, but I am not leaving unless you are with me. You can help me or just lay there and I will stay next to you even if the whole Goddamn building collapses. Understand, Baka Moyashi?"

Grey eyes searched his face a moment before Allen's lips quirked in a small, humble smile. The freshman nodded his head in compliance, letting go any automatic, stubborn impulses that would usually make him object. Kanda felt a warmth spread through his chest at the look on Allen's face. He was used to his large, beaming smiles, but for some reason the way those lips curled just now seemed so much more intimate, more private. As if not very many people saw that expression. Kanda shrugged off the sensation and moved up off the floor. Using his good leg and the wall for leverage, the older boy hoisted himself up before attempting to get Allen up as well. It was a difficult task since he could only bend his knee so far, but he did manage to steady his stance well enough to get an arm beneath his back. Very carefully, both avoiding Allen's injured shoulder and attempting not to jar his abdominal wound, Kanda pulled the freshman up and once again wrapped his good arm around his neck.

"You know..." Allen began as Kanda started for the stairs. "If my arm is a bother, you could relocate it."

"Che." Kanda dismissed the thought. "I have no way to splint it properly. Besides, the pain could just send you into shock and that's all I'd fuckin' need right now."

Kanda studied his younger classmate's face a moment, glad to notice that the boy was looking and sounding more lucid then he had moments ago. However, his face was horribly white, growing more pale by the moment and the light sheen of sweat still glazed his skin, meaning Allen was far from okay. In fact, Kanda was sure that he would go into shock from blood loss soon, so he had to keep him from experiencing any unnecessary pain or accelerated bleeding and get him to a paramedic as soon as possible.

As he grabbed hold of the stair railing and carefully began to lower himself and Allen from one step to another, he thought about how long they had been on the move since Allen had started bleeding so dangerously heavy. Between the run down the fourth floor hallway, the fall down the staircase, and their little argument on the landing, Kanda estimated that they had been moving for about five minutes. While that amount of time wouldn't have put Allen's life in jeopardy in the ideal situation where he would be lying still with Kanda applying even, steady pressure to his wound, this was far from that scenario. The fact that the freshman was using effort to move would cause him to bleed quicker. If Kanda had felt more confident that the building wouldn't continue to collapse, he would have made Allen stay still and tend to his wound more thoroughly. But he didn't. Though the floor felt steady beneath his feet, Kanda could hear the groan of stressed steal and wood within the walls. It would only be a matter of time before another part of the building caved.

Between Allen's dangerous wound and the building's impending collapse, Kanda felt himself grow more anxious to get out fast. He grit his teeth against the feel of glass and wood sliding and biting within his skin and forced himself to move quicker. Earlier, he had barely felt the pain in his body, but since Allen had pointed out the severity of his wounds he could feel every stress; every bite of pain, every pull of his muscles and he was relying on pure willpower to continue in the face of such agony. He could feel the shift of his broken ribs and the throbbing in the back of his head. However, none of that compared to the pure anguish of his left leg.

Once Kanda had started moving, he could feel splinters of wood buried all along his left arm and part of his side, but it was mostly non-threatening and more irritating than painful. His leg was another story, though. From just above his knee down to his ankle, Kanda could feel his skin stretching taught as the damaged soft tissue continued to swell beyond what was healthy. He could feel the harsh slide of wood and glass as the debris bit deeper into the muscle and tore further into undamaged flesh. Each step he took opened a new tortuous rip through his already shredded skin and more blood began to flow. By the time he reached the third floor landing, he was nauseous, shaky, and his skin felt clammy. He was quickly approaching his tolerance limit, he could feel it. But he couldn't stop, he had to move faster, and so he leaned heavily on the railing and continued down, allowing it to hold most of his weight.

At the landing between the second and third floors, Kanda missed the last step, causing him to stumble away from his support and take a couple of large, heavy strides. Once he put his full weight on his injured leg, pain laced through him like a hot, unforgiving fire. He shouted out as hard and loud as he could similar to how he would in Karate while practicing strikes, releasing that energy instead of letting it consume him.

He felt Allen's body tense and still at the sound.

"Kanda?" Came the questioning, cautious voice. Once Kanda had himself grounded steadily against the railing again and caught his breath, he turned to look at his friend. Allen was half standing, half hanging off of him with one arm slung around his neck while the other dangled uselessly at his side. His lips were now as white as his face, his legs shook with the effort of holding himself up and beginning to pant from the strain. Blood dripped from his chin, the contrast of the crimson color further bleaching his already pale face, and Kanda could feel the sickening, slick slide of gore against the skin of his abdomen. Those worried, weary eyes stared back, and Kanda could tell from that one quick look that Allen was running out of time. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." His soft response didn't sound nearly as gruff or sharp as he'd wanted it to be. So he once again concentrated on making it down the stairs as quickly as possible.

"Kanda..."

"Shut up."

With that they continued in silence, broken only by the sound of Kanda's pained grunts and the occasional hiss from Allen. When they reached the second floor landing, Kanda sighed out in relief. They had only one more flight to go, then they'd be out of this hell hole and he'd be able to get Allen to the ambulance he could hear arriving among other emergency vehicles in front of the building. He grit his teeth, preparing for the final push, when Allen's knees buckled and his arm went limp. Kanda inhaled sharply through his teeth as he caught the sudden dead weight next to him and carefully lowered the freshman to the ground.

"Allen!" He called to him anxiously, pressing his palm against his wound in a feeble attempt to staunch the blood flow. The boy's pale lips were now beginning to turn a bluish-gray color from blood loss as his body shook lightly. Breaths were drawn short and quick, and he was visibly fighting to keep his half-lidded eyes open. Despite all of that, Allen managed a slight, awed smile.

"You said... My name..." His mumbled words were slurred as his eyes slipped closed. "Sorry... I'm..."

"Allen, keep you're eyes open!" Kanda demanded as his free hand lightly tapped the side of the boy's face. Silver eyes popped back open, turning an accusing glare at the Senior. A harsh tremor coursed through the body beneath him.

"I'm... C-cold." Allen stuttered.

Kanda felt his heart sink in his chest and looked around frantically for a way out of this. He knew he couldn't carry all of Allen's weight down the rest of the stairs. That would require both arms and with his leg the way it was, he would need one arm free to balance and support himself. Then he looked at the front facing window at the landing between the first and second floors. The fire trucks would be set up not too far from there, and he wondered if he could manage to get Allen down down that many steps, break the glass and call for help. Then again, Kanda wasn't sure he'd have enough strength left to lift the pane let alone break it. He could check and see if there was a way out from the second floor, but he didn't exactly have the time to just wander around.

"God-fucking-damn it!" He shouted in frustration.

"Kanda?" He heard a familiar voice call for him, but it wasn't Allen's. A quick glance at the half-conscience freshman confirmed that he'd recognized the voice as well.

"Baka Usagi?" He asked dumbly as Allen mumbled out a soft "Lavi?" The voice seemed to be coming from behind the heavy double doors that led to the second floor hallway.

"Yep that's me!" The red-headed fool quipped. Kanda had honestly never in his life felt so happy to hear an idiot talk.

"Listen, Baka." He quickly looked back at Allen whose gaze was locked on his face, desperately trying to keep his eyes open. He was still shaking and his breathing was still too fast and shallow for his liking. "Moyashi's hurt real bad. Is there a quick way out?"

"Really? How bad is bad?"

"Bad enough that he needs to get out right the fuck now!"

"Geez! Sorry, alright?" He replied defensively before his voice turned somber. Kanda had expected him to walk through the doors to see their friend for himself, but instead he continued from where he was. "From what I hear, no one's been able to get to the first floor since its mostly caved in. But this floor has a nice big hole that people have been climbing through, and it looks like the fire department is setting up to enter through here too. I'd just managed to convince Lenalee to climb down that way when I heard Yuu shouting!" Lavi added, unable to resist the small jab even amidst the heavy mood.

Kanda let it go for now, not in the mood to waste time arguing. "Well, that sounds like our way out." He said to Allen who simply nodded his head tiredly in response. The Senior carefully wrapped his arms around the boy's shoulders and beneath his legs, careful not to jar any of the injuries. He could at least carry him a few feet before getting Lavi to help. Before he stood, he called out to the red-head, "Oi! I'm coming out that way, open the door."

"Ahhh..." The tone of voice told Kanda that he was about to hear bad news. "The door is blocked from this side."

"Jesus Christ!" He growled as Allen chuckled humorlessly. Kanda wondered if maybe the boy'd lost his mind. "Why didn't you say that before, idiot?"

"Sorry." He replied ruefully. "Look, there's a gap wide enough that I think you could get the door open. Can you and Allen climb? Because there is a large enough opening near the ceiling."

"No he can't fucking climb." Kanda seethed between clenched teeth. He was loosing his patience. Everywhere he turned there was another obstacle blocking his path, and it was taking too damn long. Allen needed to be in an ambulance eight, no, ten minutes ago! "He is fucking bleeding to death and practically in shock. He can't stand, let alone climb!"

"Alright, alright. I was just asking." Lavi tried to placate his Japanese friend. He seemed to be on the wrong end of Kanda's rather sharp temper quite often. In a completely serious tone, he added. "Good thing your father made you take all those emergency first aid classes you kept bitching about, huh?"

Kanda couldn't say anything, because he'd thought something similar earlier.

"Hey," Lavi began with a sigh, "why don't you try to carry him over or something?"

He could try that. His leg may give out before he could get himself over, but Kanda would be able to get Allen through. It seemed as though the Freshman could read his mind, because he was already shaking his head 'no' in protest, the matted, bloodied, white hair shifting around him.

"Both..." He said softly, but stubbornly, as he trembled in Kanda's arms.

The older boy felt his lip twitch in a slight, wry smile as he remembered the argument they'd had earlier. When he told Allen they would 'both get out' he wasn't exactly thinking the same thing the Freshman was.

"No." He said, trying to make his voice sound gentler with little success. "You. It was always about you." He watched Allen's face scrunch in confusion, but didn't elaborate any further.

Standing with a pained hiss, Kanda carefully cradled the younger boy close to his chest as he made first few unsteady steps toward the door. Searing pain nearly whited out his vision, but he just bit back a groan and shook it off. He stumbled to the metal door and managed force it open using his back. Luckily, it swung inward about halfway before getting caught and stuck, which allowed both of them enough room to pass through easily, and when Kanda shifted away, it stayed in place. He looked at the massive pile in front of him and felt a wave of disappointment crash through him. The mess of stone, wood, and plaster seemed to have come from a blown-out wall and was a near vertical climb up. The Senior had been hoping that the climb would be less steep, but at least it looked like he would only have to step up a couple of feet before he was within manageable reach of the gap between the pile of debris and the ceiling.

With renewed determination, Kanda shifted Allen so that the boy was pressed firmly and securely against his chest with the strength of a single arm and elevated enough so his feet were dangling a few inches off the floor. It was far from the easiest way to carry him, but the older boy didn't relish the idea of slinging Allen over his shoulder and risk aggravating the abdominal wound, or carrying him piggy-back style since he was sure the other boy didn't have the strength to hang on. Glancing one more time at the Freshman, Kanda noticed his tired, half-lidded eyes were still focused intently on him, as if his face were keeping him conscious.

"Ready?" He wasn't exactly sure why he felt the need to ask that. Perhaps, just to be sure that the limp boy he held was actually awake and aware.

Allen blinked long and slow before nodding his head weakly in response. With that, Kanda gripped a sturdier piece of wood just above his head and began to climb. The muscles of his arms, shoulders and back tensed and bunched with the effort of carrying the extra added, dead weight and his swollen leg screamed at the use. By the time he was two feet off the ground, Kanda was panting and sweating as though he'd just run five miles as the pain of it began to take its toll. Fortunately, this was as high as he needed to go in order to get Allen over the top. He found foot holds among the crap that allowed him to curl his feet under and pin him in place, giving both of his arms freedom. As Kanda's left foot flexed and knee locked, he felt a sharp sear rip through his calf as the muscle was torn and blood dribbled down to pool in his already soaked sock. He could not help the pained scream that tore itself from his throat, but he refused to allow his foot to uncurl from its position.

"Hey, Kanda! You alright?" He heard Lavi's fear filled voice ask.

"I'm fine." Kanda responded quickly. He looked over at the boy curled into his chest, nervous that he hadn't said anything or moved at all when he shouted. Though Allen was breathing and his eyes were open and shifting, he seemed completely unaware. "Allen. Allen!" He shook the boy lightly, but got no response back. The muscles in his arm were beginning to strain and shake from supporting all of the other boy's weight on its own, and Kanda could feel him beginning to slip.

"Shit." He mumbled under his breath. "Hey Baka Usagi!" He called out. "Can you reach over and grab Moyashi? He needs a hospital now, but I can't get him over."

"Yeah, I got it." Lavi answered.

He heard a slight popping noise and a lowly muttered curse as the red-head began to climb up the other side. Once Lavi got close to the top, the pile shifted and swayed dangerously. Kanda cursed and held on tightly as his he heard the boy on the other side leap off and away from the debris. He was debating he same course of action when it stilled and stopped crumbling, though the pile still felt wobbly and unstable. With a last quick burst of adrenaline, and not hesitating or wasting anymore time, Kanda pulled and pushed Allen up to the top.

"Grab him Usagi!"

"What?" Even as Lavi responded, Kanda felt the wood he stood upon begin to shift again.

"Just do it now!"

The piled debris cracked and rumbled as he felt more then saw Allen lifted from his arms. Now relieved of his burden and still feeling the burst of adrenaline, Kanda quickly jumped off the tumbling mass and stumbled through the still propped open door. He landed on the ground hard as the door closed with a resounding bang behind him, just missing catching a foot in the crushing weight. Kanda lay on the ground in the aftermath, feeling suddenly drained.

"Hey Kanda! Are you alright?" The muffled voice questioned through the door.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He managed to make his voice sound gruff and loud despite the fact he couldn't find enough energy to move. "I'll find my own way out, just get Moyashi to the ambulance now."

"But..."

Lavi was cut off as the building shuddered and groaned again. Another collapse was impending and Kanda was so close to getting Allen out.

"Now!"

Without another word, he heard Lavi's footsteps tap against the tile as the other boy all but ran out with Allen in his arms. Kanda felt himself relax once he was out of earshot. He may call the red-head an idiot often, but he knew he was actually remarkably intelligent. It was just his mannerisms that were idiotic. Lavi was also one of the few people Kanda could call a friend and they trusted each other implicitly. There was no one, aside from his brothers, that he felt more confident to get Allen out safely.

Kanda wanted to keep his end of the unspoken promise. He wanted to get up and find a way out, but he couldn't move. It was more than just feeling drained, all of his strength was gone and his body was completely numb. He had spent every last ounce of his energy carrying Allen down from the fourth floor. Even now, he wasn't completely sure how he managed it. Sound fell away from his ears and that darkness that had plagued him from time to time came back. It clouded in front of his eyes and narrowed his field of vision down to a pin prick. Kanda distantly felt the ground beneath him shift ominously. Just as the darkness consumed him, he wondered if someone would find him before the building collapsed.

**XoxoxoX**

Well there it is!

... Just kidding there is one more chapter left. As a hint, there is an 86.8% survival rate among patients with penetrating abdominal trauma. Of course, all of that depends on they organ(s) effected, the severity of the wound, how long it took the patient to get treatment, how far the patient had to travel to get to a trauma center (not every towns ER has one of those), and whether or not the patient presented with symptoms of shock :-/

See you next time!


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